DONUTS AND DISCUSSION

The reason I compose this article each month  is to inform our Visalia citizens about what’s going on down at city hall, and to hopefully provide an objective view and peek behind the scenes.  The city tries to be transparent and informative, there is no skullduggery or hidden agenda.  Elected city officials and employees are human beings just like you, and are trying to serve our community.  After all, we actually live here too, we’re your neighbors, and we also want what’s best for the city.

City council members are always available by telephone, email or personal contact.  In recent times, our current mayor, Amy Shuklian, has scheduled office hours at city hall once a month for the public.  I suspect that there may be some who might not know their way around city hall or might feel uncomfortable initiating contact with a council member.  To supplement the foregoing, and to reach out further into the community on an informal basis, I have started what I call “Donuts and Discussion.”  D and D is held on Saturday mornings, to accommodate those early birds who may not be able to take off from work otherwise.  The idea is to hold these meet and greets at different locations around town and to make it as convenient as possible for the public to attend.  Our first D and D was held at the Donut Factory, Etc. on North Demaree in July, and our next one was hosted by Panera Bread on South Mooney in September.  I appreciate the graciousness of the owners of these businesses to allow us to come in and hold these get-togethers there

At the D and D’s we’ve held so far, we’ve had some interesting issues and discussions.  Topics which have been brought up by those attending have included district elections, pension reform, landscaping and subdivision issues, graffiti, sales tax, code enforcement, Agenda 21, and a city survey.  I, along with my invited city official, am available to answer questions, or to address issues that citizens may have that relate to them personally or that are of citywide concern.  To date, Fire Chief Mark Nelson and Police Chief Colleen Mestas have been my invited guests.  In addition to the invited city official, other department heads and city staff have dropped by on their own to say “hi” and to be available for questions.  Nancy Loliva, our community relations manager, has been invaluable in assisting to set these gatherings up.  Her efforts and those of others of the city who have attended, are appreciated.  In some instances, I or city staff have followed up in subsequent telephone calls and emails to the attendees regarding the concerns which they have raised.

I’d like to invite each of you to come to our next Donuts and Discussion, which will be held on Saturday, October 27, 2012, 7 to 8:30 a.m. at Vallarta Supermarket in their bakery/cantina area, 3112 N. Dinuba Blvd. with assistant city manager, Mike Olmos.  Please feel free to drop by for a few minutes to say “hi,” to let us know how we can be of help to you, and to enjoy a donut or pastry with us.

Tuning in to Council Meetings
I recently received an email from local resident Sharon Doughty, asking if city council meetings are televised.  I replied that due to current budget constraints, “no.”  I anticipate that in the future this will happen.  We know that not everyone has the time to personally attend these bi-monthly meetings.  All agenda items and staff reports are put on the city’s website in advance of each council meeting for public perusal.  If you want to hear firsthand what is discussed, go to the city’s website at www.ci.visalia.ca.us, click on “City Government” and then select “Agendas.”  Pick the prior city council meeting that you’re interested in, and click on the agenda item which you want to know more about.  Not only can you read the entire staff report there, but you can also listen to a recording of the city council discussion on each particular agenda item.  

If you have questions or topics regarding the city  which you would like to have addressed in future articles, please email Warren at wgubler@ci.visalia.ca.us, or call (559) 713-4400 x 3313.  For past articles, visit directfromwarren.blogspot.com.

Warren Gubler
Visalia City Council Member